A Tiny Newborn Princess // Two-Week Old Baby Girl

I recently had the chance to snuggle with the most adorable, teensy tiny newborn girl! She was three lbs smaller than my last baby was at birth, so really I just couldn’t get over her. And as you’ll see below, Baby A’s just beautiful!

Parents put so much preparation into their first child’s arrival, and this couple was no exception. In fact, they astounded me with their thoughtfulness: Her beautiful name with such special meanings. The perfect nursery that incorporated both mama’s stints in Asia and DC icons. The special family blankets — mama’s quilt knit by her grandma, which we used in the first set of solo shots below, and a blanket Baby A’s grandma crocheted for her. Plus a gorgeous wood cradle handcrafted by Baby A’s grandfather — a work of art we laid her in, with grandma’s blanket. This session felt just so personal and customized.

Mama had thought about all of these special elements she wanted to incorporate into the shoot before the session itself, and we’d chatted and texted about details in the weeks and days leading up to it. It got me so excited, I anxiously awaited the email announcing baby’s arrival! But most importantly, during the session itself, mama demonstrated such calm and patience. She had a vision, and she and dad truly worked to settle Baby A until we could get the shots she’d been dreaming of.

As with so much with a newborn — starting from the delivery itself, to nursing, to sleeping, to fussiness and contentedness — you just don’t know exactly how it’s going to go because the newborn is pretty much running the show. The photo session is similar, but it’s also amazing how much you can learn about your new little one in the first few days, and that confidence comes through in the pictures as you start to take control — a preview of how the next weeks and months will evolve and (albeit slowly) get easier.

I loved watching these new parents work their magic with Baby A — seeing how they’ve learned her cues, the songs they know will calm her, her signs for hunger, her need to be held and rocked a certain way. The connection they’d formed with their daughter in 14 days was beautiful, they were so at ease already as a party of three, and I was honored to capture this special time for them.

Wouldn’t it be cool if I could install a spiral staircase to climb up and take pictures from in every client’s house?? Oh, and their windows… this place was just dreamy.